Thread-guiding device



A. L. HANSEN.

THREAD GUIDING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 10, 1919.

1,340,541. Patented May 18,1920.

STATES TENT ornion AUGIE L. HANSEN, .OF EVANSTON', ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO JUS'IRITE MANUFACTURING THREAD-GUIDING DEVICE.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 18, 1920.

Application filed April 10, 1919. SerialNo. 289.034.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AUGIE L. HANsnN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Evanston, in the county of Cook, State of Illinois, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Thread-Guiding Devices, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved thread guiding device for facilitating knitting, tatting, crocheting and other work where thread or yarn is utilized.

Devices 'of the class referred to usually are in the form of split metal bands or thimbles having guide passageways therethrough for thread or yarn and acting to press the thread or yarn against the finger to cause friction and to hold the yarn or thread taut to the desired degree. The devices are usually of spring sheet metal and are slipped over a finger of the user, and must clamp the finger with considerable pressure in order to offer the necessary resistance and retardation to the passage of the thread or yarn. Heretofore, these devices have been made circular or elliptical and engaged intimately with the finger throughout their extent. Itihas been found that then the devices clamp the finger with great pressure, blood circulation through the finger is apt to be impeded and the finger becomes numb and painful.

One of the important objects of myinvention is, therefore, to so shape guiding devices of this class that they will not impede the circulation no matter with what pressure they engage the finger, this being accomplished by making the guiding device polygonal instead ofcylindrical or elliptical or by ridging the device transversely sothat it will not engage with the finger throughout its extent but will leave clearance spaces which will permit circulation to continue.

Another important object of my invention is to provide improved construction for facilitating the application of thread or yarn to the device when it is in place on the finger. In prior devices this could be accomplished only by slipping the thread or yarn between the finger and sections of the device from the outer edge thereof. As the outer edges of the device as heretofore constructed are usually pressed into the skin when the device is applied to the finger, it is sometimes difiicult to slip the thread or yarn into place.

In accordance with my invention I provide V shaped slots in the device which are entirely surrounded by metal and which leaves transversely extending V shaped tongues whose points are slightly raised. This permits thread or yarn to be applied against the smooth surface of the metal of the device in front of the tongue ends and the thread or yarn can then be readily slipped into place below the tongues, and between the tongues and the finger.

This improved construction of mine can be applied to circular devices as well as to my improved polygonal shaped devices and when the devices are polygonal the tongues are formed in the flat sides. this arrangement affording the additional advantage that the tongues will be more intimately held against the skin and the friction against the thread can be greatly increased without need of applying the device on the finger with such great pressure as is necessary whelre the devices are cylindrical or elliptica Another object of my invention is to have vention are clearly illustrated on the accompanying drawing in which- Figure 1 shows a hand holding a piece of work and having my improved guiding de vice applied to a finger,

Fig. 2 is an end elevational view,

Fig. 3 is a side elevational View,

Fig. 4 is a developed view,

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view on plane 55 Fig. 4-, and

Fig. 6 is an end elevational view showing a modified construction.

The construction of my improved guiding device is best illustrated in Fig. 4 which is a developed view showing the band after stamping from sheet metal and before bend ing into shape. It has two V shaped slots 10 and 11 which are entirely within the edges of the band and therefore entirely surrounded by metal. The slots extend in opposite directions from their bases and leave the tongues 12 and 13 which extend transversely of the band in opposite direction and have the V shaped edges. As shown in Figs.

2 and 5 the apexes of the tongues are dewhen the device is on the finger.

After stamping, the band may be bent to circular form, but I prefer to bend it into polygonal form as shown in Fig. 2. Bending is preferably such that the tongues will appear at the flat sides. hen two tongues are used as shown, the band is bent in three places i, j and is so that the finished device is of rectangular shape with the tongues appearing at the flat sections Z and m at the opposite sides of the middle bend y. The device is symmetrical, that is it may he slipped on the finger either endfirst, and when in place on the finger the flat sides Z and 'm and the flat ends 12 and 0 will be tangential to the finger which is illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, there then being the clearance spaces 12, g, r and s where the finger is not engaged. This will prevent interference with the blood circulation through the finger and the device can be worn with comfort no matter how securely it is applied to the finger or with what pressure the sides thereof engage with the finger. This flat sided arrangement has also another decided advantage for it causes the clamping pressure of the device to be concentrated at the areas of contact between the fiat sides and the finger so that the flat guide tongues 12 and 13 will be held with much greater pressure against the finger than would be the case if the device were circular or elliptical and engaged at all points with the finger. Suthcient friction will therefore be afforded by the tongues on the thread or yarn without requiring the device to be slipped up along the finger to so great an extent as is neces sary in elliptical or circular devices in order to get the necessary friction.

After the device has been slipped on the finger a distance the thread or yarn is applied, and this can be readily accomplished as the thread after being applied against the smooth surface of the metal in front of the tongue apeXes can readily be shifted transversely below the raised apexes of the tongues and then into place below the tongue bases and into the guide openings a, b, 0, (Z and 6. After application of the thread or yarn, the points 0, f, g, and it will prevent escape of the thread or yarn.

I thus produce a very eificient thread or yarn guiding device which can be worn with comfort and which will efficiently hold and guide the thread and will give it the desired tension.

1 do not of course, desire to be limited to the exact construction and arrangement shown and described. For example the device instead of having four sides as shown, may have a different number or, may be partly fiat sided and partly circular or elliptical, or as shown in Fig. 6 the device may be of circular or elliptical shape with transversely extending arches 14: provided therein which prevent contact of the device with the finger at these points and thus prevent stoppage or retardation of the blood circulation. The arches 14;, and the corners i, j, is also enable a better hold to be obtained on the device to facilitate its application to or removal from the finger.

Having described my invention, I claim as follows:

1. A thread guiding device in the form of a band for the finger, having thread receiving and friction tongues and having transversely extending ridges at intervals affording clearance space to prevent restriction of blood circulation.

2. A thread guiding device in the form of a ring stamped integral from sheet metal, said ring being arched at intervals to form transverse sections which will not engage with the finger on which the ring is slipped whereby to leave clear spaces for the circulation of blood, and thread guiding tongues formed in said ring between said arched sections, said tongues exerting pressure against the finger whereby to frictionally engage threads between said tongues and the finger.

In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name this 8th day of April, A. D. 1919.

AUGIE L. HANSEN. 

